AC Milan officially failed to appear in European competition next season. A 1-3 defeat to AS Roma in the 37th week of Serie A ended their last chance to just qualify for the Conference League. This defeat completed a gloomy week after previously losing in the Coppa Italia Final.
The situation was even more tragic because Milan had to play with 10 men since the 21st minute. Santiago Gimenez was given a red card after elbowing Gianluca Mancini. The decision was taken after a VAR review which again became controversial.
Coach Sergio Conceicao openly considered the decision unfair. “Today’s VAR and AVAR are the same as those on duty when we played against Bologna. I’m not saying the red card for Gimenez was undeserved, but the situation was identical to the Sam Beukema incident against Matteo Gabbia in the final. Why was there no VAR intervention then?” said Conceicao, as quoted by Football Italia.
This match became a symbol of Milan’s season full of frustration and failure. With this result, they will not play in the Champions League, Europa League, or Conference League next season.
AS Roma only needed three minutes to open the scoring. Matias Soule’s corner was met by Mancini’s header that penetrated the top corner of Mike Maignan’s goal. Milan had time to reply through Joao Felix after Alex Jimenez’s shot was blocked by the goalkeeper.
However, Roma took the lead again through Leandro Paredes’ direct free kick. Maignan was unable to anticipate the ball that was heading towards the near post. Roma’s third goal was scored by Bryan Cristante through a hard shot from outside the penalty box.
Milan actually had quite dominant control of the ball in the first half. “We tried to give everything. Roma didn’t even touch the ball for long. I felt we could win,” said Conceicao.
Unfortunately, Santiago Gimenez’s red card changed the course of the match. “We shouldn’t have conceded from a dead ball like that. Luka and Rafa had chances, but we ran out of energy and Cristante scored the third goal,” he continued.
Sergio Conceicao could not hold back his emotions and was finally sent off in the second half. He is also confirmed to be absent from accompanying the team in the last match of the season. Many suspect that this is his last match with Milan.
“I don’t want to look for excuses. I love this profession and I’m sad not to be with my players. Just because of one word, I was kicked out, even though I only asked for respect,” he said.
Conceicao emphasized that since he arrived, Milan have actually shown improvement. “I’m a very demanding person with myself. I saw the statistics before this match. Since I arrived, we collected enough points for the Champions League zone,” he said.
However, he also acknowledged the team’s shortcomings. “I’m not saying this is a good season or a perfect five months, but there are positive things too. We won the Supercoppa, reached the Coppa Italia final, but we failed in crucial matches. This is a bad season for a club as big as Milan,” he concluded.
This failure marks a new low point for AC Milan in the last decade. After building hope with the Serie A title, Milan have now fallen without even being able to play in Europe. Their reputation as an elite club is starting to be questioned.
Conceicao leaves the evaluation to the club. “Everyone has to judge my work. At the end of the season, we’ll talk about it,” he said.
Milan can now only hope for major changes in the transfer market and management. Without European competition, their appeal to recruit top players is diminishing. The pressure on the club to improve immediately will be greater.
This season has been a reminder that big names do not guarantee success. For Milan, not qualifying for Europe is not just a technical failure, but an identity crisis. That is much harder to cure.
